Monday, July 20, 2015

FEES UPDATE JULY 20, 2015

For each visit to your home there is a "House Call" fee. Think of this fee as a trip fee or mileage fee. Wrapped into this fee is the time involved in driving myself and my fully equipped, state-of-the-art mobile veterinary clinic to your front door. It includes fuel, insurance and maintenance and repair costs to keep the mobile clinic operational. Consider my starting point to be the central NE Hts of Albuquerque. Through the 25 years of providing the house call service, the house call fee for the Albuquerque metro area has changed little and still remains very reasonable at under $60.00.

HOUSE CALL FEES

ABQ Metro Area (NE, NW, SE, SW) $58.00

Rio Rancho $60.00-$65.00

Corrales $60.00

Bernalillo $65.00

Placitas $65.00-$70.00

Carnuel $58.00

Tijeras (near the village area) $60.00

Cedar Crest $63.00

Highway North-14 (Sandia Park, San Antonito) $65.00

Frost Road (Highway 306) $65.00-$68.00

Paako and San Pedro Estates $70.00

Interstate 40 East (Rt 66) Zuzax, Sedillo $65.00-$68.00

Highway 337 from Tijeras $65.00-$68.00

Edgewood $70.00

Moriarty $72.00

Bosque Farms $65.00

Los Lunas $68.00

Belen $70.00

Other areas: PLEASE INQUIRE

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES-PHYSICAL EXAMINATION

Examination fees are broken down into two major categories, wellness exams and sick pet exams.

A wellness exam is the typical examination done on an annual or semi-annual basis when your pet is not sick and you want to get an assessment of your pet's general health. Typically any necessary vaccinations or "shots" are given at this time. A sick pet examination is just that, i.e. you have a medical concern above and beyond his/her normal state, perhaps appetite is decreased, water consumption is increased, weight loss is occurring, a lameness is present or your pet is vomiting, has diarrhea or is coughing. My examinations include a head to tail evaluation (as much as your pet will allow) and includes a rectal temperature, an ear, eye & oral/dental exam, palpation of abdomen, lymph nodes and any lumps/bumps present, auscultation using a stethoscope of the chest/heart and in the case of a lameness, palpation of the joints and a neurological assessment if indicated. Your input regarding concerns you have is vital in this whole process.

Radiology (X-Rays)-We offer mobile digital x-ray services with some limitations. In order to ensure accurate positioning and technique and also to limit radiation exposure to our personnel, all x-rays are done in a mobile setting with your pet sedated.Therefore an exam and evaluation must be done prior to x-rays to ensure it is safe to sedate your pet.Due to space limitations, we will also be limited to pets <75 lbs. Because of the use of sedation and also to ensure an optimum image, we ask that your pet be fasted off food and water for at least 8 hours prior to x-rays, thus first morning time slots are optimal after an overnight fast. Completed x-rays are evaluated by myself as well as a radiology specialist via internet connection. Fees will be based on the type of sedation required and the number of images but generally range from $335.00-$600.00 (+ the house call fee) in a mobile setting depending on the study.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES-GENERAL SURGERY

General surgery includes soft tissue surgeries other than reproductive spay/neutering procedures. We refer our orthopedic surgeries such as cruciate repairs and fractures to a local specialist.A physical exam and consultation must be done with you and your pet prior to giving an estimate for general surgeries. Please do not ask us for a quote sight unseen. Each surgery is unique to a particular pet, all having mitigating circumstances which prevent accurate estimates without prior examination and evaluation.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES-DENTISTRY

In order to give you an estimate for dental services I will first need to examine your pet. Each dental procedure is unique to the individual pet and many things have to be taken into account to give you an ACCURATE estimate. Please do not ask for a dental estimate until your pet has been properly examined as one size does NOT fit all. Dental procedures do require general anesthesia. Most will require dental x-rays to assess the root structure which is not readily visible during examination. We have state-of-the-art digital dental x-ray technology to make this possible. Blood work is routinely performed prior to anesthesia. Extractions and any dental surgery will affect the final bottom-line fee. Some cases will require antibiotics and pain medication. Dental procedures are routinely scheduled on M, Tu, W and F mornings after your pet has been fasted overnight.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES-FELINE CASTRATIONS ("NEUTERING")

Feline neutering is routinely performed M, Tu, W and F. Appointments can be scheduled 8am-2pm. An 8 hour food and water fast is required prior to general anesthesia and surgery. The surgery is of short duration and your pet will be released to you after he is awake. The fee which includes a wellness examination, sedation, pain medication, general anesthesia and surgery is $225.00 (+ the house call fee).

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES-FELINE "SPAYS"

A "spay" operation is actually an ovariohysterectomy where through an open abdominal incision, both ovaries and the entire uterus is removed rendering irreversible sterility. Further "heat" cycles in addition to reproductive cancers are eliminated and the likelihood of mammary (breast) cancer is reduced when the procedure is done early in life. My preference is to do this surgery between 5-6 months of age and prior to the first heat cycle.Using these parameters, mobile spay operations run $300.00 (+ the house call fee). The fee includes a wellness examination, sedation, pain management, general anesthesia, vital signs monitoring and surgery. These are scheduled on M, T, W or F mornings only.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES-CANINE CASTRATIONS ("NEUTERING")

Castration is the surgical removal of both testicles rendering irreversible and complete sterility. Advantages include the prevention of testicular cancer, mitigation of male dominated behavior (when done early in life) and decreasing the chances for prostate enlargement later in life. In a mobile setting, I prefer to do these surgeries on dogs 5-6 months of age.A physical examination is required prior to scheduling to ascertain that BOTH testicles are in fact descended and present in the scrotum. Using these parameters, mobile canine neutering operations run $350.00 (+ the house call fee). The fee includes sedation, pain management, general anesthesia, vital signs monitoring and surgery. Fees will increase accordingly for older and larger dogs. These are scheduled M, T, W and F mornings only.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICES-CANINE "SPAYS"

A "spay" operation is actually an ovariohysterectomy where through an open abdominal incision, both ovaries and the entire uterus is removed rendering irreversible sterility. Further "heat" cycles in addition to reproductive cancers are eliminated and the likelihood of mammary (breast) cancer is reduced when the procedure is done early in life. My preference is to do this surgery between 4-6 months of age and prior to the first heat cycle. In a mobile setting, I will be limited to dogs 50 lbs or less. Using these parameters, mobile canine spay operations run $425.00 (+ the house call fee). The fee includes sedation, pain management, general anesthesia, vital signs monitoring and surgery. Fees will increase accordingly for older and overweight dogs. A physical examination will be required prior to scheduling to verify your pet is not in heat and to assess her general physical condition. **I will not spay dogs that are currently in heat** Surgeries are scheduled M, T, W or F mornings only after an overnight food and water fast.

VACCINATION/"SHOTS"

I try and tailor my vaccination protocol to the individual patient. In the case of rabies vaccination, you are subject to the laws of the state and your particular jurisdiction. I divide my vaccines into "CORE" vaccines and "NON-CORE" vaccines. For dogs and cats, I believe that the rabies vaccine is a core vaccine and because of the public health implications of rabies, it is imperative that your pet's rabies inoculation remain up to date. **If I have never seen your pet before and you request vaccinations in addition to the rabies vaccination, I do require a physical examination of your pet prior to vaccination (see wellness exam fees above)**

EUTHANASIA
In or at home euthanasia provides a less stressful and peaceful means to aid in your pet's passing. I will do my best to accommodate urgent requests but these will be subject to my pre-scheduled appointments and my availability at the time of the request. Injectible sedation is used in all cases as a prelude to the actual euthanasia injection. The sedation and euthanasia procedure can all be completed in your home or yard or inside the mobile veterinary clinic. The later is preferred for small or frail pets where proper lighting and positioning are vital. Please discuss your wishes when you contact us.

CREMATION
Cremation services are provided. At your request, I can transport your pet to a local crematorium for either private (cremains returned back to you in an urn) or communal (cremains not returned) cremation. The process takes about one week. You can also make these arrangements with the crematorium directly. If I handle this process for you, the fees are as follows: